Figma is confronting a proposed class action lawsuit in a California federal court that accuses the popular collaborative design platform of secretly using creators’ work to train its artificial intelligence systems. The complaint argues that this alleged practice not only violated user rights but also helped strengthen the company’s technological capabilities ahead of its recent $1.2 billion IPO, ultimately boosting its market valuation. At the center of the case is the claim that Figma’s AI features were trained on user-generated content without clear and informed permission.
According to the lawsuit, the company’s generative design tools are powered in part by intellectual property belonging to millions of designers and enterprises that rely on the platform for product prototyping and interface development. Plaintiffs argue that users were automatically opted into data usage practices they were never properly told about, leaving them unaware that their creative work may be contributing to Figma’s AI advancements.
Figma has firmly denied these assertions. The company maintained transparency around its policy and insisted that customer trust remains its top priority. In a public response, Figma emphasized: “We do not use any customer data to train our models without explicit authorization to do so,” reiterating that customers must first grant permission before their content contributes to AI development. It further clarified that even in instances where users opt in, “all data is de-identified and focused only on general patterns.”
The legal team representing the plaintiffs remains unconvinced. Their attorney, Carter Greenbaum, stressed the broader implications of the suit, warning that companies handling proprietary materials must be held accountable to ensure user creations are not exploited. Greenbaum stated that customers need confidence that their ideas, trade secrets, and business assets are not feeding undisclosed AI training systems.
Given Figma’s presence across major global industries — including clients like Alphabet, Microsoft, and Netflix — and its integrations with tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the outcome of this lawsuit could influence industry standards for AI governance and consent. The plaintiffs are seeking financial damages and a permanent order preventing Figma from deploying any models trained on disputed user data.
As the case moves forward, it has reignited debate around how design platforms and AI-powered software should responsibly handle creative content in the fast-evolving era of automation.
